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Last Updated: Monday, 17 December 2007, 15:21 GMT

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More or Less Christmas Quiz 2007

Test your knowledge of maths, statistics, economics, demography and trivia with our Christmas numbers quiz. (The first five questions appear in our programme broadcast on 17th December 2007 on BBC Radio 4 at 1630 GMT.)

Question 1

The Keynesian economist the late Lord Kaldor reputedly said that he had discovered the cause of Christmas. What did he say the cause was?


	A: Corporate advertising


	B: The money supply


	C: Government subsidies?

Question 2

Having eaten a bit too much Christmas dinner you decide to go for a bit of a walk. You walk up the hill behind your house at 2mph (3.22 km/h). Then you walk back down it via the same route at 3mph (4.83 km/h). What is your average speed?


	A: 2.5 mph (4.02 km/h)


	B: 2.4 mph (3.86 km/h)


	C: You can�t say without knowing the distance to the peak

Question 3

Data from the National Food Survey shows that the tendency to choose foods with positive health connotations has become strongly correlated with social class. The posher you are the more likely you are to choose foods with positive health connotations. But at Christmas does this social class food gap...


	A: Widen


	B: Remain the same


	C: Narrow

Question 4

Imagine that Rudolph and Santa are running for mayor of the North pole. A random poll shows that 52% of likely voters favour Rudolph (48% support Santa, there are no undecideds). The "margin of error" (which is two standard deviations) on the poll is 2%. Roughly, what is the probability that a majority of likely voters prefer Rudolph?


	A: It is a statistical dead-heat: 50%


	B: 97.5%


	C: 100%

Question 5

Which of the following statements about celebrities and their mathematical abilities is true?

a. Former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson gave up show business earlier this month to become a maths teaching assistant.
b. Gordon Brown has a degree in maths from Edinburgh University.
c. Brian May, guitarist and songwriter for the band Queen, obtained a doctorate from Imperial College London earlier this year for his astronomy research into zodiacal dust.
d. Dara � Briain, comedian and chair of the comedy quiz show Mock the Week. has a degree in mathematical physics from University College, Dublin.
e. Former EastEnders actress and Strictly Come Dancing Star Letitia Dean has a degree in Actuarial Science from City University in London.
f. Desperate Housewives actress Teri Hatcher (the one who plays Susan) majored in maths and engineering when she was at college in California.
g. Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq has a degree in Economics from Cambridge University.


	A: They are all true


	B: A, B and E are false


	C: Only B and E are false

Question 6

If you want to place a bet on a White Christmas, the bookies will usually offer you odds of around 6:1. You win if a single snowflake falls on the roof of your local weather centre. Taking a more realistic definition, that "at least 50% of the UK is snow-covered when you open the curtains on Christmas morning", how many White Christmases were there during the 20th Century?


	A: 12


	B: 15


	C: 2

Question 7

If an average 18-year-old from 1900 took an IQ test today, what score could he or she expect to get?


	A: Around 70


	B: Around 100


	C: around 130

Question 8

You have 100g of cranberries. Ninety-nine percent of the weight of cranberries is water. Time passes and some amount of water evaporates, so the cranberries are now 98% water. What is the weight of berries now?


	A: 98.98g


	B: 98g


	C: 50g

Question 9

You are making turkey stock for the Christmas day gravy. Overnight, part of the stock evaporates, making it go from being 99% water to 98% water. How much of the solution has evaporated?